Time dimension

Every indicator in an indicator app is tracked over time, one value per period. The time dimension is what makes an indicator app a record of how a metric moves rather than a single snapshot. Before you collect any values, you choose how often each indicator is measured.

Choose the collection interval

The collection interval (also called the period type) is how often an indicator gets a value. You pick one of five: Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, or Yearly.

Choose the interval that matches how the real-world measurement happens. A meter you read monthly should be a monthly indicator; an annual target should be yearly.

How periods work

Once an indicator has an interval, you collect and see its values period by period. You move between periods to enter a value for each one, for example typing in January's figure, then February's, and so on. When you look at the data, you see the value laid out across the periods, so the trend over time is easy to follow. You can move forward and back through the periods, and focus on a particular range of them.

How time grains relate

Indicators that are measured at different intervals can still relate to each other. A finer interval can roll up into a coarser one: twelve monthly values add up to a yearly total, for example. Ovidens understands these relationships, so a yearly metric can be computed from monthly data without you doing the arithmetic by hand. You will see this in action when you build a calculation that combines indicators tracked at different intervals.